


The Trouble with Collars

by SailorChibi



Series: puppy play [3]
Category: Marvel Cinematic Universe, The Avengers (Marvel Movies)
Genre: Alternate Universe - No Powers, Collars, Fluff, M/M, Pet Play, Puppy Play, Puppy!Tony, Steve is a dork, i don't know how to tag this one, it doesn't work out well for either of them, it's basically cute fluff, mentions of puppy play, owner!steve, tony tries to surprise steve
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-09-11
Updated: 2016-09-11
Packaged: 2018-08-14 08:36:01
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,668
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8005921
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/SailorChibi/pseuds/SailorChibi
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>"Goddamn it. I am not facing Tony with this on," he told his reflection. Tony would tease him for the rest of his life. He just had to find something to pry at the clasp with. Yes, that would surely work - but he had to hurry if he was going to get out of the collar before Tony arrived home.</p>
            </blockquote>





	The Trouble with Collars

**Author's Note:**

> Commission for anon as part of the puppy play verse. When I heard the story, I couldn't stop laughing and had to write about poor Steve in the same situation.

It wasn't Steve's fault.

No matter what Tony said, he would maintain that stance until the day he died. Especially because, if they were laying the blame at someone's feet, it definitely belonged with Tony. Tony was the one who had neglected to pick up his laundry and put it in the basket like Steve had asked. Tony was the one who'd thrown his clothes all over the place. Tony was the one who'd dashed out of the house that morning, frantic because he was running late and Pepper was going to rake him over the coals if he was late for one more meeting.

Granted, it was Steve who let curiosity get the better of him. 

He was bending down to pick up one of Tony's discarded shirts when the sunlight coming in through the window bounced off of something shiny, catching his eye. Steve grabbed the shirt and straightened up, realizing that the sun was reflecting off of the tag on Tony's collar, which was sitting on their dresser on a small pillow after their last play session. It had been storming outside and Tony had gotten out while Steve wasn't looking; by the time he'd noticed, Steve'd had a filthy pup on his hands. Neither one of them had enjoyed the resulting bath, mostly because Tony disliked water with a vengeance and Steve had ended up soaked.

Despite that, a fond smile crossed his face at the memory as he picked up the collar. It was made of a soft, supple leather that felt nice against his fingers. He had to wonder, though, whether the collar ever bothered Tony while he was wearing it. Steve tried to make sure that it was loose, but Tony had a bad habit of pawing at his collar until it slipped off and then howling mournfully until Steve figured out what was wrong and put it back on. He usually had to tighten it then, sometimes to the point where, even though he could fit two fingers in between the collar and Tony's throat, he wondered if it wasn't choking Tony a little. The thought was unsettling. He thoroughly enjoyed their puppy play sessions, but he never wanted to cause Tony discomfort.

Steve glanced around, as though to check to make sure that he was still alone. There was only one reasonable way to make sure that the collar wasn't too tight for Tony to wear. He could just ask, of course, but it hadn't taken Steve long to realize that Tony wasn't always as forthcoming with information as he should be. Not that Steve was any better when it came to certain things, and the past six months had been interesting. It had taken a lot of trial and error for them to get to where they were now, and the whole communication thing was definitely still a work in progress. 

He loosened the collar, then lifted it up to his own throat. It didn't look nearly as sharp against his skin as it did Tony. The bright shade of red complimented Tony's olive toned skin quite nicely, particularly when Tony had a tan. But Steve was a little too pale for the color. It made him look washed out. Good thing no one else would ever see him in it. He smiled wryly to himself and quickly snapped the two edges together. He had to tighten it a little to get it the point where it sat as snugly against his throat as it did against Tony's, then twisted the collar so that the tag hung below his Adam's apple.

"I love Tony. I hate my job. Bucky is an asshole," he said out loud, testing the feel of it when he spoke. Depending on what he was saying and how his breathing changed, the leather was tighter or looser. It was a strange feeling to have something wrapped so intimately around his throat. Even a turtleneck, on the odd occasion that Steve wore one, wasn't this close-fitting. Plus, cloth didn't really cling to him the way the collar did. It wasn't an unpleasant feeling, per se - Steve was just very aware that the collar was there. It was impossible to forget.

Maybe that's what Tony liked about it so much. Not only was the collar visible proof that Steve loved and cared for him, Tony was reminded of that every time he swallowed or barked. Or when he moved his head, because it turned out that when Steve dipped his chin, the tag hung just low enough to brush against his chest. And the metal was just cold enough to catch his attention. Plus, there was the fact that the tag itself was another symbol of affection, because it had Tony's name inscribed on the front and Steve's name and phone number on the back. 

Regardless, he knew for sure now that it wasn't choking him. It was snug, yes, and if he was running or otherwise doing something that required a lot of exertion, it might restrict his breathing a little bit - but overall it was just... _there_. He couldn't really see the appeal behind it, but Tony absolutely adored his collar and in the end that was all that mattered. Now Steve could put the collar on him without having to worry that he might be causing his lover harm. Reassured, he reached for the clasp.

It wouldn't come apart.

"What the hell?" Steve said under his breath. It was a simple clasp: push the two sides in and the free end was supposed to pop out effortlessly. No matter how hard he tugged, the end wasn't coming out. He stopped only because he was worried about ripping the collar entirely. He wouldn't be able to bear the Tony's reaction if that happened. They'd picked out the color and the material together, and then Steve'd had it specially made. He would never forget the look on Tony's face when Steve showed him the finished collar for the first time. 

No, he had to be doing it wrong. He leaned in closer to the mirror and examined the clasp to see if it was caught on something, but as far as he could see it looked no different from normal. Steve was the only one who put the collar on or off Tony, and he'd done it a thousand times by now. There was no special trick to it. So why wasn't the stupid thing coming off?

"Goddamn it. I am not facing Tony with this on," he told his reflection. Tony would tease him for the rest of his life. He just had to find something to pry at the clasp with. Yes, that would surely work - but he had to hurry if he was going to get out of the collar before Tony arrived home.

He hurried into the kitchen and rummaged through his drawers until he found a hammer. He tried prying at the clasp, but the claws of the hammer were too big. A screwdriver yielded similar, unsatisfying results, with the bonus that Steve narrowly avoided stabbing himself in the neck when the edge of the screwdriver skidded off the metal clasp. It also left a small scratch on the metal, which was enough to make Steve wince. He was positive that Tony would notice the scratch and probably (rightfully) be furious about it.

Tossing the tools back in the drawer, he returned to the mirror - this time in the bathroom, where there was better lighting. He examined the clasp from every angle, but couldn't find anything that would explain why it was stuck. Renewed tugging did little but make the collar dig uncomfortably into the back of Steve's neck. He stopped, huffing in frustration and glaring at the collar in the mirror. He felt like it was taunting him now.

He wasn't sure what to do now. There was no way he was cutting it off, not without trying every last resort available to him first. He could call Bucky, but Bucky would _never_ let him hear the end of it. And if Bucky came over to help, so would Clint and Natasha. This story would literally follow him until the day he died if those three found out. Fuck that. Steve would rather spend the night stuck in the damn collar then let those three know how dumb he'd been.

And that was the moment when he heard the car wheels on the driveway outside that meant Tony was home.

Exactly two minutes later, Steve walked into the kitchen as casually as he could. It was still a rush to see Tony come into the house without knocking. They had just moved in together two weeks ago, and there was still a huge learning curve they were working through, but that rush always convinced Steve that it was 100% worth it. In spite of his current predicament, he felt a smile cross his face. That smile only grew bigger and downright silly when Tony looked up from his phone and grinned back, opening his arms for a hug and a kiss hello, which Steve gladly granted.

"How was your day?" Steve asked once their kiss had ended, savoring the feeling of Tony in his arms. An eight hour work day was really much too long, especially since Tony’s work days usually lasted closer to ten or twelve hours.

"Long and horrible, as usual. Pepper's a cruel mistress." Tony sighed dramatically and went to lay his head on Steve's shoulder. Then, suddenly, he paused and frowned. "Hey babe? Why are you wearing a turtleneck when it's 90 degrees outside?"

Shit. "I was cold," Steve lied.

"You were cold?" Tony repeated, slightly disbelieving. 

"It was one of those nights," Steve said, feeling guilty for lying. Tony knew about his nightmares, of course. Knew what prompted them: that most of Steve's platoon had frozen to death, and that only Steve and Bucky had survived. He didn't like using something like that as an excuse, but the alternative of letting Tony know what a dumb mistake he'd made seemed much worse.

"You should've woke me up, Steve. You know I don't mind staying awake with you."

"I know. But you need sleep. As it is, from the sound of it Pepper was mad at you all day." Steve hugged him tighter, pressing a kiss to the top of Tony's head. Tony had his own share of nightmares. Needless to say, there had been some very long nights between the two of them.

"She was, but that's pretty much par for the course. And besides, she was more angry at Johnson."

"Don't tell me that idiot was at it again."

"Oh, you wouldn't believe what he did today," Tony said. His voice was 100% indignant, but he was melting into Steve's arms even as he started in on his story. 

Steve was more than happy to stand there and listen while Tony recounted his latest problems with the Board of Stark Industries. It was the same old problem that Tony had been ranting about for the past six months: Pepper and Tony were trying to usher in change and breathe new life to the stagnating company, while the Board stubbornly refused to see why any change might be necessary. One of the men in particular, Johnson, was frequently the target for Tony's ire.

It took about twenty minutes for Tony to run out of steam, at which point he subsided against Steve with a huff. He nuzzled his cheek against Steve's shirt, making adorable little grumbly sounds under his breath. That was normally about the time when Steve would've suggested that puppy Tony come out to play for a while, but there was a big problem with that. 

Instead, he smoothed his hands down Tony's back and said, "You sound like you need a shower and a pizza. Why don't you go take one and I'll order your favorite?"

"Or, you could join me in the shower and we could order food after?" Tony said with his best sultry expression.

Christ. Sometimes Steve thought Tony should've been a minx, not a puppy. "The point of a shower is for you to relax, not get wound up," he said, kissing Tony quickly and then stepping away before Tony could feel how that suggestion had affected him.

"Orgasms are relaxing!"

Steve laughed as he reached for the phone. "Go shower, Tony."

"Nobody loves me," Tony muttered, but Steve could tell he was trying not to smile as he slunk out of the room. Steve watched him go and sighed, putting a hand to the collar on his throat. Truth be told, though they hadn't said it yet, he loved Tony a lot. And after the day he'd had he would love nothing more than to take a nice long shower with his lover and then relax in front of the television. 

Instead, he quickly called the pizza place and ordered their usual, then hung up and tiptoed back to the mirror, hoping against hope that something magical might have happened in the past half hour. Unfortunately, the clasp proved to be just as stuck as before. He was at the point of wondering whether he could somehow pry out the stitching and then sew it back together without Tony noticing when the doorbell rang, nearly scaring him out of his wits.

Amazed, Steve glanced at the clock. He’d been standing there wrestling with the collar for thirty-six minutes with no progress whatsoever. Thank god Tony took long showers. He paid for the food and brought it into the living room along with a couple of beers. Tony padded out to join him ten minutes later, smelling of the coconut body wash he favored and looking much more relaxed.

“Fuck that smells good,” he said, throwing himself down on the couch. “Steve, feed me.”

Steve rolled his eyes but obligingly handed him a hot piece of pizza. He was half-tempted to make a comment about puppies not being allowed on the furniture – but not only would that probably spark a play session, it wasn’t even true. Puppy Tony was as spoiled as they came. Despite Steve’s determination to keep him off the couch, Tony inevitably ended up in Steve's lap.

He sat down beside Tony with his own piece of pizza, the rest of the box within easy reach, and they watched television for a while. It was a testament to how tired Tony was that he made no attempts at mocking the show; instead, he seemed to content to lay with his head against Steve’s shoulder and nibble at the food in between sips of beer. Had it not been for Steve’s secret and the fact that it really was far too warm to wear a turtleneck, it would’ve been a lovely night.

And he thought he’d been doing a good job of hiding it, too. His plan was to wait until Tony went to bed and then do whatever it took to get the collar off. It wasn’t the best plan, of course. There were nights when Tony didn’t sleep at all, too caught up in an engineering frenzy; he usually spent those nights at the tower in his workshop, since they were still in the process of converting Steve’s basement into a mini-workshop, but sometimes he would stick around the house. Tony seemed calm, though, and he’d clearly had a long day, so Steve had hopes of an early night.

In the end it didn’t matter, though, because after about an hour, Tony sat up, yawned and said, “So, are you going to tell me why you’re wearing my collar, or am I supposed to guess?”

Steve froze. “What?”

Tony raised an eyebrow and smirked. “Steve, honey, babe, you’re the worst liar ever. A turtleneck in this weather? All you have to do is step outside and there’s no way you’d be cold. Plus, you’re sweating. Not to mention, the pillow in the bedroom is empty. I noticed it as soon as I walked in. It wasn’t hard to figure it out after you refused to shower with me.”

Damn it. Steve knew he’d been forgetting something. The little black pillow had been his idea; he’d picked it up while shopping with Natasha, figuring that Tony’s collar deserved a place of honor since it was so important to Tony. If Tony wasn’t wearing it, that’s where the collar was kept. An empty pillow was like putting a sign up saying that the collar was missing. 

He sighed, knowing that the game was up, and reluctantly pulled down the hem of the turtleneck to show Tony. But he didn't say a word just yet about it being stuck, as though hoping that he could put off the inevitable just a little bit longer.

“Why did you put it on?” Tony asked. His eyes were sparkling with amusement, but to his credit he was trying not to laugh. 

“I wanted to make sure that it wasn’t too tight when you were wearing it.”

“Too tight?” Tony repeated. “Steve, you dork. Don’t you think I would’ve said something if my collar was too tight?”

“No,” Steve said frankly. “You didn’t even want to admit that you don’t like getting your head wet, Tony. I sent you into a panic attack that took you two days to recover from. Pepper wanted to kill me. She gave me dirty looks for weeks after that.”

Tony paused. “Okay, yeah, point, but Pepper definitely likes you, which you have to admit is kind of a feat considering that she walked in on us that time –”

“Tony.”

“… Right. Anyway, the point is I like it when my collar is snug. Wearing it loose defeats the whole purpose. Why do you think I knock it off if it’s too loose?” Tony lifted a hand unconsciously and touched his bare throat, eyes locked onto the collar around Steve’s neck. “It reminds me that you’re here to take care of me, so I don’t have to worry about anything. I can just relax and let go. I need that, Steve. I need that reminder, or everything else starts creeping in.”

Impulsively, Steve pulled him into a hug. “I just didn’t want to hurt you again.”

“You’re not. You won’t. Especially not with this.” Tony hugged him back, playfully hooking a finger into the back of the collar. “Unless you’ve decided you want to join me as a puppy, can I have my collar back?”

“Um.” Steve’s face grew hot as he blushed. “I, uh, there’s something wrong with the clasp, Tony. I can’t get it off.”

That’s when Tony finally lost it. He burst out laughing.

“Tony!” Steve said, blushing harder. He shoved his lover away. Tony rolled against the other side of the couch, still cackling.

“Sorry. I’m sorry,” Tony said between bouts of laughs, waving his hands. “I – oh god, Steve, I was going to _surprise_ you.”

“Surprise me?”

“I was bored a couple of nights ago, so I modified the clasp so that it would only respond to our fingerprints.” Tony sat up, still smiling broadly. “If we liked it, I was going to get Clint and Bruce to test them too. If they were a success, I was going to have Pepper figure out how we could roll out a line of them.”

“So all I need to get this off was my finger,” Steve said, slightly disbelieving. After all the time he’d spent fighting with the stupid thing, it was hard to believe it was that easy. 

Tony’s smile was sheepish. “Just the tip of your finger, actually. Here.” He leaned closer and pressed his index finger against the clasp, tugging lightly at the same time. It came off as smooth as butter, and instinctively Steve took a deep breath. It felt strange not to have the collar around his throat anymore after spending hours wearing it.

“How did you get my fingerprint?”

“JARVIS has had your fingerprints on file since we started dating.” Tony bit his bottom lip, fingers rubbing at his collar. “Sorry. I didn’t think you’d put it on me before I had the chance to tell you. I just thought… I liked the idea that only the two of us could take it off.” He was blushing a little, and all of Steve’s indignation died a slow death.

“It’s fine,” he said, and Tony looked up at him hopefully. “Just – next time tell me before you start making modifications to our stuff. What if I’d put it on you and couldn’t figure out how to get it off in an emergency? What if you got knocked out and I couldn’t get it off?”

“I doubt that was going to happen,” Tony said, rolling his eyes. He held the clasp out and pointed. “Right there. See?”

Steve leaned closer and squinted. Now that Tony was showing him, he could just make out a slight imperfection in the clasp, a little indent just right for the tip of a finger. It was right next to the scratch Steve had accidentally put on it. Both of them were quiet as they studied the clasp in silence; Tony rubbed his thumb over the scratch, and Steve winced and got ready to apologize. Before he could, Tony cleared his throat and looked away shyly.

“I could use a little while as a puppy,” he said quietly.

It was so rare for Tony to actually ask that, for a moment, Steve just stared at him. He got over his surprise quickly, nodding. “Of course, baby. Here.” He held out a hand for the collar.

Tony handed it to him with a very serious look. “Now remember, Steve, this goes around my neck, not yours.” He started laughing again.

“I was just making sure it was comfortable!” Steve said, exasperated. Tony just laughed harder, and Steve rolled his eyes even as he gently set the collar around Tony’s neck and clasped it shut.

**Author's Note:**

> Find me on [tumblr](http://tsuki-chibi.tumblr.com/).


End file.
